Elizabeth's Guestbook

Hi Elizabeth, I will keep you in my prayers. It’s perfectly normal to feel scared. I just had mitral valve replacement February 14, 2018, and now am recovering very well. As Helen D. said “it’s really not bad.” You’ll be just fine.

Hi Elizabeth, Just wanted you to know that I'll be praying for your speedy recovery. Had my surgery 2 weeks ago and it is really not bad. Good luck and please keep us posted.

Hi Elizabeth, Don't focus on the uneasy feelings you may be experiencing. Ask questions of your doctor and office personnel till you feel you have all the information you need, then just sit back and trust in your surgeon. They do this every day and they are good at it. I too am diabetic, and they took good care of me in the hospital, and at home by having a home health nurse check on me twice a week. You are going to do great!

I had my surgery on October 4th 2016...and I feel fine. It was originally thought that I would get the aortic valve but as the surgery progressed it was noted that my aorta was enlarged in a place it was difficult for the echo cardiogram to see. My surgeon of course replaced my aorta with what I say looks like a vacuum cleaner hose. Then the only added complication was my heart was weeping blood an took some time to become stable enough to conclude the surgery. From the time I went in until they wheel me out was about 8 hours...not too unusual and I'm thankful for all the good work of the surgical team. As for loosing weight...a visit to the hospital for heart surgery is a good way to kick-start a diet. I ultimately lost 30 lbs in a few months. I think the weight loss was due to not eating wheat and getting more post surgery exercise. Best wishes to you and yours !

Hi Elizabeth. I also need aortic valve replacement probably next year. Hoping a little longer I can wait. That sounded very Yoda like. 😊 I am also a diabetic fpr 15 years and was very overweight. I finally started seeing and endocrinologist a year ago and it turned my life around. I have brought my bmi down by 15 points. 2 more and I am in a healthy range for my height. Are you seeing an endocrinologist? I can't even begin to tell you what a huge step this was for me in being my healthiest possible for this surgery.